At 7-5 and sitting at the 8th spot in the NFC playoff race, the Lions desperately need a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. A loss Thursday would put them at 6 losses, needing help and essentially put their season on life support.

Here are the 5 things I believe the Lions need to do to beat the Cowboys.

1. Lean hard on the run to open up the pass

Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery give Detroit a real chance to control the line of scrimmage and keep Dallas off balance. By forcing them to commit more defenders to play near the line of scrimmage, it will open up the pass game and give the Lions opportunities for big plays. Running it consistently , whether it’s working at first or not, will open up the pass, especially if Detroit mixes in play-action. The Lions need to control the LOS and keep Dallas’ pass rush an their heels. Now, with that said, they have to mix up the runs…running Gibbs 3 straight plays up the middle isn’t ideal. Especially with the struggles of the IOL.

Getting Gibbs in space on screens and with short angle or flat routes to isolate him with the LBs is another option.

Logan Wilson was benched in Cincinnati before being traded, between him, DeMarvion Overshown, Kenneth Murray and Marist Liufau and how they attack the football in the run game will be a huge factor. The Cowboys DL is a presence but if the Lions can get to the 2nd level blocks clean, they should be able to take advantage of the LBs.


2. Force Dallas into predictable passing situations

If Detroit’s run game gets on track, the Cowboys will likely abandon the run and try to out-gun them through the air. Even given their defensive lapses — especially downfield and in coverage — that could play into Detroit’s hands. The Lions should be able to take advantage. The Cowboys run game isn’t impressive anyway and making them have to play catch up will make it non-existent, especially if the Lions can eat the clock with long drives sustained with the run game.

Forcing long third-downs or obvious passing downs gives Detroit’s defense better chances to get pressure, generate mistakes and force much needed turnovers.


3. Elevate the pass rush / pressure the quarterback

The Lions need to get more out of the pass rush. It’s not a secret. I think one of the ways to do that is elevate Ahmed Hassanein this game and see what he can bring. The problem is with Hutchinson getting most of the attention from the opposing offenses, he’s being taken out of the game and the other guys on the DL are non factors. Playing McNeil at DE isn’t the solution. Al-Quadin Muhammad has shown flashes and may not be an every down guy, but he can and should be able to take advantage of the 1v1 he will face. Wingo can play DE and rush but he’s been inactive. Hassanein would also provide a fresh player with almost no film on.

Another way is to play Brian Branch closer to the LOS and let him wreak havoc. Him floating there, whether he blitzes or not will cause issues with the Dallas front and create opportunities for him and others to get to the QB.

It’s not ideal to have to blitz all the time to generate pressure and the Lions can get creative but it depends on if the Lions can run the ball and stop the run.

Dallas’ right tackle is prone to oversetting, losing inside leverage and losing late in the rep

This is perfect for Aidan Hutchinson and his unrelenting motor.

4. Stay disciplined — avoid big plays and third-down breakdowns

Dallas has weapons through the air so if Detroit’s coverage slips or misses assignments, big plays will follow.

Discipline — in gap integrity against the run, in tackling, and in coverage responsibilities — will be crucial. Mistakes, missed assignments and communication blunders could swing momentum toward Dallas fast and turn this into a track meet. That’s something that this offense could handle in the past, but with the issues of the OL and the potential of Amon-Ra St Brown missing the game and Sam Laporta out, they can’t get locked into a shootout.

The Lions can’t afford mental errors like lining up wrong or burning timeouts after spiking the ball (whether or not the radio went out). Those 5 yard penalties are drive killers for the offense, especially when you’re looking at 3rd and 7 instead of 3rd and 2. Vise versa, getting a 5 yard illegal contact penalty to help the offense extend a drove can’t happen. It most certainly will happen with the physical style the Lions play on defense but they have to limit it.

5. They must capitalize on turnovers and field position

If the Lions defense gets takeaways, the offense MUST take advantage of it, especially on short fields. And they can’t get greedy this game. I love the 4th down aggressiveness and I don’t think Dan Campbell should change how he approaches those situations….not completely.

There will always be a time to take that gamble and then there are times where you definitely need to build in the lead you already have or chip away at the deficit you’re in. Chasing points can get dangerous and swing momentum away from you quickly.

With that said, chasing points and getting them can end a game quickly as well, so it’s a double edged sword. Not every situation needs to be a haymaker knockout attempt.

6. Utilize TeSlaa and Lovett more

The Lions have got to get these two more involved in the game, especially TeSlaa. He has shown in the limited targets he gets that he can make plays, whether it be contested catches or reading the defense mid-play and adjusting his route to create a scoring opportunity. With LaPorta out the Lions need a big redzone threat as well. It’s been 12 games, that’s plenty of time to get acclimated and his feet under him. Just like ARSB did his rookie year, the late season surge should be happening now.

With Lovett, he’s in a prime spot to take over Raymond’s job and show why it should be his going forward. It’s my belief they he was drafted to do that anyway and with Raymond out, no better time to see what he’s got than now. He can’t be relegated to just a gunner on punt coverage. He has to be returning both kicks and punts. Tom Kennedy will most likely handle those as well as the offensive stuff but there is no reason to not let your young draft pick take at least the return duties from Kennedy.

7. Myles Frazier has to get playing time.

With Awosika listed as questionable, this may be the game to get Frazier some reps. While he may not start, that will probably go to Neise, it would be wise to get him in there. I’d say start him, he’s from LSU so he’s played against talent in college…and it isn’t the craziest thing because Mohagnay started last year after no camp and juat a few weeks of practice. In any case, Frazier has to see meaningful snaps so the Lions can get a good read on what they have going forward.